Mother awakens from coma when she hears her newborn baby cry for first time

Last year, Shelly Ann Cawley had to undergo an emergency C-section while delivering a baby girl. Her daughter, Ryan, was born healthy. Shelly Ann, on the other hand, did not wake up from the procedure. The new mother slipped into a coma before getting the chance to meet her baby girl.

Shelly Ann's family waited by the mother's bedside and prayed for her quick recovery. Her husband Jeremy said:

"[The doctors] absolutely thought they were losing her at this point."

However, one nurse suggested that they try making skin-to-skin contact between the new mom and her baby girl. They put the baby on her mother's chest and managed to get the baby to cry. As soon as the baby began to cry, Shelly Ann's vitals spiked. Ashley Manus, the nurse who suggested bringing the baby to her mother, told PEOPLE:

"We knew that somewhere in there she was hearing her baby. Rylan saved her mom's life."

One week later, Shelly Ann came out of the coma. She told Buzzfeed:

"I remember staring at Rylan's face and thinking she is the most beautiful baby in the world."

One year after the incident, Shelly Ann credits her daughter for getting her to wake up from the coma. She told WCNC:

"I think it's pretty amazing. It just amazes me that a baby so little and have such a big impact. They're pretty much helpless. They can't do anything, but yet she was able to. Her crying was able to give me something to fight for."

As the night comes to a close, I reflect on my day and how different it was than at the same time a year ago. What a...